A Killeen police officer has been placed on administrative leave as the department investigates his involvement in a disturbance at Bellaire Elementary School Friday morning.

According to a police report, the off-duty officer signed into the school shortly before 7:20 AM on personal business. While walking in a hallway, the officer heard a disturbance inside a classroom and entered to check on the people inside.

Identifying himself as a Killeen police officer, he identified and gained control of a 9-year-old boy causing the disturbance and asked a faculty member what normal protocol called for. He was told the child would have to be removed from the classroom and taken to the principal's office, so he and another faculty member began escorting the student to the office.

En route to the office, the child began to resist, so the officer restrained him. Other faculty members then took control of the situation.

The officer's supervisor was contacted at 7:55 AM.

According to a KPD press release, Killeen Police Department protocol calls for the initiation of a criminal investigation as a result of minor injuries observed on the child. According to KPD spokeswoman Carroll Smith, the investigation is intended to determine if the injuries occurred during the officer's involvement in the disturbance and under what circumstances.

The officer has been placed on paid administrative leave while an internal investigation is conducted to determine if the officer's conduct was compliant with department policy.